AVM stands for Area Voter Mitra. The Jaagte Raho! Campaign is creating a network of citizen volunteers or Area Voter Mitras to inspire values of active citizenship in urban India by bringing out the vote in union, state and local elections and by promoting participation in neighbourhood areas. This campaign is an initiative of Janaagraha and is endorsed by the Election Commission of India.

These citizen volunteers will work towards facilitating voter registration and improving voter turnout in their respective neighbourhoods. This neighbourhood is identified as a polling ‘part’/ polling booth area, a geographical unit of 1200-1500 voters or 200-300 households. Every voter belongs to a ‘part’ as defined by the Election Commission of India.

Any citizen of India, above 18 years of age, registered as a voter from his current place of residence alone can sign up to become an AVM. However, those who are not registered as voters can also sign up and assist the AVM in his/her activities.

An Area Voter Mitra will have three primary activities:

i. Cleansing of Electoral rolls or the Voter list- This is an intensive activity where the AVM will work with his/her team of volunteers to verify the current voter rolls by going door-to-door. The AVM will assist people to register, delete and correct details on the voter list. He/She will work closely with the Election machinery to ensure that the voter list gets updated.

ii. Cleansing of Electoral rolls or the Voter list- This is an intensive activity where the AVM will work with his/her team of volunteers to verify the current voter rolls by going door-to-door. The AVM will assist people to register, delete and correct details on the voter list. He/She will work closely with the Election machinery to ensure that the voter list gets updated.

iii. Get-Out-The-Vote Drives- This is an activity prior to elections where the AVM uses his/her time and resources to encourage and help people to cast their vote in an informed manner on the day of elections.

You can sign up as an AVM at ijanaagraha.org by clicking here. You can also walk into our office for an introduction session every Saturday at 5:00pm and sign up then and there.

An Area Voter Mitra will have three primary activities:

1. Voter registration Guidance- The AVM will play the role of assisting the residents in the neighbourhood to register to vote. He/she will serve as the single point of contact for all queries on voter registration and voting.
2. Cleansing of Electoral rolls or the Voter list- This is an intensive activity where the AVM will work with his/her team of volunteers to verify the current voter rolls by going door-to-door. The AVM will assist people to register, delete and correct details on the voter list. He/She will work closely with the Election machinery to ensure that the voter list gets updated.
3. Get-Out-The-Vote Drives- This is an activity prior to elections where the AVM uses his/her time and resources to encourage and help people to cast their vote in an informed manner on the day of elections.

You will find your polling booth address on the first page of electoral roll of your part/polling booth which has your name registered as a voter. You will also find this on the website of your State’s Chief electoral officer (CEO) (eg. www.ceokarnataka.nic.in) or at your Electoral Registration Officer’s (ERO) office.

You can even check with your neighbours regarding the polling booth address, since all residents in an area normally belong to the same polling booth.

The role of an AVM is currently for a period of six months. On an average, an AVM will need to commit 2-3 hours a week. However, during an intensive clean up drive or just before elections, the AVM and his team may spend more time on their activities.
 

In view of the upcoming BBMP (local government) elections in Bangalore, the AVMs will play a critical role in cleaning up the voter list, encouraging the people to register to vote and cast their vote in an informed manner. The objective of the AVM will be to get 90% of the residents in the polling booth area registered to vote and increase the voter turnout at elections to 60%. Currently, the voter turnout is an average 45% for general and state elections and less than 40% for local elections.

Once you sign up as an AVM, you will be given a one-day training on how to go about the activities. This session will give information on activities, planning the calendar and community organizing to sustain the efforts.

If you are a registered voter and have signed up to become an AVM, you will have to undergo a formal training organized by the campaign. Only after the successful completion of this training will you be handed out your identity card and be identified as an AVM. While signing up as an AVM, you can choose your preferred date for training.